Travel Diary: Saint Lucia & Martinique
By Mona Cordes, featuring Romana Ashraf
My friend Romana and I went to the Caribbean for a little under two weeks. We visited Saint Lucia and Martinique, both very beautiful places. The photographs document our travels in both countries.
Saint Lucia welcomed us warmly with its sunshine, heat and fresh fruit. Its people were friendly, and its culture so vivid, free and easy going — which was humbling, as we stood out like foreigners. We explored the country through every mode of travel possible: bus, taxi, air, swimming, diving and walking.
We journeyed over to Martinique via ferry, and back via plane. There, we met a few beautiful souls who made our journey very pleasant. There was a lot of drama with lockdown and COVID tests — especially with our car braking down, and finding out that rats, snakes, birds — maybe even bats — were eating our bread at night. A heavy storm also appeared, which had us as wet as you will never be, surely. Now I know when Brits complain about the weather, they don’t even come close…
What I miss so much is the fried fresh fish and rum punch at the most beautiful beaches, surrounded by palm trees, reggae tunes, and the sun shining as it goes down. I miss the early morning swims at 6 a.m., hikes in moist rainforests, and the sounds of insects buzzIng around. ◆
